Definition:Sign of Number
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Definition
The sign of a number is the symbol indicating whether it is:
or:
Hence a number's sign has evolved to define the fact of the number being positive or negative independently of the symbol itself.
Thus:
- the sign of $3.14159$ is positive
and
- the sign of $-75$ is negative.
Also see
Sources
- 1989: Ephraim J. Borowski and Jonathan M. Borwein: Dictionary of Mathematics ... (previous) ... (next): sign: 2.
- 2014: Christopher Clapham and James Nicholson: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Mathematics (5th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): sign
- 2021: Richard Earl and James Nicholson: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Mathematics (6th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): sign